By Geoff Walter / SNY.tv

 

What Joe Torre Watch 2007 has taught me, if anything, is that either the Yankees brass are completely dysfunctional and unable to reach a consensus after 11 days, or they know where they're going and just don't want to tell anybody. They say that no news is good news, but it's difficult to see anything good right now coming from Tampa, and I don't just mean the Devil Rays. Maybe that's why they packed up yesterday and came back to New York.

 

If the Steinbrenner camp is divided, it's disastrous for sons Hank and Hal if they truly are establishing a different regime from their father, who ruled with an iron fist. Just the uncertainty flowing from Yankeeland is enough to say that there is a transfer of power from The Boss to his progeny. Not only that, but you now have the players exercising leverage -- Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera to name two -- over the franchise as well. You can bet that George Steinbrenner would never have allowed that to happen a few years ago. You see it in history all the time -- the instant there's a power vacuum or a transfer from one party to another, you have a intense scuffle for the scraps. By allowing so much time to pass between the end of the Yankees' season and their decision on who is going to be the manager for the team next year, a firm foundation has definitely not been established. And the fans' outcry is not going to die down -- a rally was just held in support of Torre in Times Square yesterday! A Yankee manager hasn't had this kind of fan support since Billy Martin! Make a decision already! That's how The Boss would have done it!

Don't get me wrong, I do not feel that Torre is being left to twist in the wind -- that fate was reserved for Willie Randolph by Jeff Wilpon at the beginning of October. Torre's made plenty of money, and will eventually have a plaque in Cooperstown and his number hung out in Monument Park. That said, he is still the best candidate for the job, and if anybody thinks that anyone else can manage the Yankees, deal with the media, and the Steinbrenner family, he's sadly mistaken. Tony La Russa has an issue with the media, I have a problem with Joe Girardi managing players he's played with, and if Don Mattingly takes the helm and doesn't make the playoffs in 2008, the team will get drilled for not having Torre return.

It's always been a tough gig working for the family Steinbrenner, and from all indications it looks as though it's only going to get tougher. And through 12 long years, there's only one guy who's been able to handle all aspects of the job.

Wanna argue with the Ref? Don't like the call? Go ahead and make your own!